Rhett Fisher: BYU student was athlete, Eagle Scout

Rhett Fisher was an accomplished tenor and aspiring electrical… (Courtesy of the family )

April 1, 2014|By Dan Tracy, Orlando Sentinel

Rhett Fisher never let his epilepsy stand in the way of what he wanted to do in life. He was an Eagle Scout, a highly accomplished singer, a competitive athlete and an aspiring electrical engineer.

But his father, Lawrence Fisher of Apopka, said "Rhett's real strength and what blows us away is he was intensely humble and tried to help people."

Rhett Fisher, 24, died March 22 from a fall likely caused by an epileptic seizure. He was a senior at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, and was found by a friend in his bedroom.

Earlier in the evening, Fisher had performed with the university men's chorus, the largest collegiate men's chorus in the country. He was a tenor who loved to sing, going back to childhood and his days at Apopka High School, said his mother, Stacey Fisher.

After his last performance with the BYU chorus, his parents said, he did some school work, took time to speak on the phone with his grandmother and cooked for friends.

"He just had a way of reaching out to people," Stacey Fisher said.

The Fishers said they were overwhelmed by the stories told by Rhett's fellow students about his kindness and friendliness when they traveled to Utah to take his cremated remains home. A memorial service was held Saturday at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Days Saints in Apopka.

One young woman, they said, sang during Rhett's memorial service in Provo, but previously was something of a recluse who had been brought out of her shell by Rhett's friendship.

One semester short of earning his degree in electrical engineering, Rhett was looking forward to taking a two-year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints upon graduation. He would have followed in the footsteps of his two older brothers, Ammon and Alex, as well as his father, who went to South Korea.

Lawrence Fisher said Rhett's epilepsy never kept him from pursuing any of his many interests, including camping, biking and canyoneering, which features the practice of rappelling down mountainsides.

He also found time while in college to obtain a ham radio license, as well as built a large, radio-controlled plane, Lawrence Fisher said.

Even as a youngster, the Fishers said Rhett was an intense competitor. He ran the mile in middle school and once had to stop training for more than a month because he bruised his heels from running so hard.

Rhett transferred that intensity to almost every facet of his life, Lawrence Fisher said, who watched his son struggle to overcome epilepsy.

"He persisted and fought and studied that much harder," Lawrence Fisher said.

One of Rhett's professors, Lawrence Fisher recalled, said he had never taught a student who work worked so hard at his studies.

A summertime employer of Rhett echoed those sentiments, Lawrence Fisher said. Rhett, he said, had the difficult job of selling pesticides door to door in Texas during the past summer, but excelled at the work and never complained.

"He really made an effort that was distinctive," Lawrence Fisher said.